Our History

Who are we?

Founded in 2004 by Fredi Torres, Saó del Coster was born of a strong vision: priority to terroir, priority to product and priority to the people who make wine. Fredi has since left, and it is Joël Chevallaz, a partner from the outset of the project, Patrick Pochon and his son Damien, all passionate about wine and viticulture and enchanted by the region, who are the guardians of Saó del Coster's founding philosophy, which was visionary at the time.

Respect of the terroir

Cultivate our vines biodynamically, respect the moon cycles, use biodiversity to minimize the risks of vine disease.

Humility

Seek expertise as required, provide full transparency, respect the needs of the client and share our experience .

Quality

No compromise on the quality of our wines. Consult experts in each filed for constant upgrades, advices and knowledge

Saó del Coster was founded by Fredi Torres, a Galician who grew up in Switzerland. A well-known DJ in the '80s, he'll be a winemaker, he says, after drinking a 1971 Cheval Blanc, and he'll be a winemaker in the Priorat or nowhere else after a 1998 Clos Mogador. For this conversion or reconversion, he rented an old ruined house in Gratallops, transformed it into a winery with his partner at the time, Jeroni Basté (celler de l'Abadia), and found some Swiss friends willing to invest money in the venture. It is the beginning of Bodega Saó del Coster with 9'011 bottles for the first vintage.

Between 2005 and 2013, the small project expanded, with plots being bought and replanted, and others rented out. Production is increasing, wines are being sold all over the world without any real marketing strategy... excellence always finds ambassadors. In 2013, the first warning shot was fired: the 2012 vintage and part of the 2011 vintage were lost. Friends are reluctant to put money back in, a new shareholder who claims to be a manager arrives, wants to put squares in circles and the artist leaves...

In 2018, after five years of incomprehensible management, the wine almost turned sour. Saó del Coster goes through liquidation!

One year later, Joël Chevallaz, who's actively engaged in the project from the beginning, partnered with Patrick Pochon, a Swiss wine enthusiast, owner of the vines, partnered together and relaunched the initial roots of the project. A few months later, Damien Pochon, Patrick's son, joined the adventure.

Frédéric Duseigneur, biodynamic pioneer and former owner of the Duseigneur estates, has stayed on as a technical advisor, while Jeroni Basté has returned to help make our wines with respect for terroir and grapes. Since 2022, Sonia Blasco Martinez, a Catalan oenologist and agricultural engineer, has joined us to further improve the quality of our wines.